


Epiphany

by Arlzureinne_Karale



Category: Ensemble Stars! (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Angst, Friendship, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-26
Updated: 2017-05-26
Packaged: 2018-11-05 04:15:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,177
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11005758
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Arlzureinne_Karale/pseuds/Arlzureinne_Karale
Summary: And the universe chortled, "Smile, King of Knights. You're loved."





	Epiphany

**Author's Note:**

> Ensemble Stars! belong to Happy Element, this oneshot dedicated for Tsukinaga Leo's Birthday (05/05).

In his world, emotions could be measured.

It was a weird concept, but he believed in things like aliens and space mermaids; all was well.

He was born in a world where everyone have blank meadow full of leaves tattooed on their body parts, growing along them. No matter where—their entire back, across chest to their stomach, stretching from their hips, from their calf to their thigh, swirling, interwining, growing with delicate ink, forming a complicated blank garden depending on the person.

His own deserted garden was growing on his right arm. Exactly from tips of fingers to his shoulder blade, looked like bramble bushes instead of blueberry, azaleas, or even pretty wild bushes in general. Shades of green mixed with his own skin like the edge of brown pallette; two stalks of lily of valley painted on his lower arms, too small to be noticeable, shades of pinkish white sent a giddy happiness down his chest.

Sometimes he would find someone with garden painted across their skin. Ink splashed with shades of twilight, flowers akin to lilies and roses popped out from the leaves, blooming without time to wither for, and he always wondered if his skin could be that colorful.

He asked his parents, once.

When will more colorful flowers grow from his garden?

His father hummed and ruffled his head, green eyes that so much like his twinkled with wisdom; When one loved him so with any kind of love—romance, friendship, familial, platonic, any kind of loves existed in this world—flowers would bloomed on his garden.

More and more flowers would grow on his tattoo if people he knew hold him dear in their heart too. Like a mark of their existence, it would wither if the emotions were to fade.

And when Tsukinaga Ruka was born, Tsukinaga Leo has three flowers peeked between the leaves of his lonely meadows. Two lily of valleys, and one tiny but bright sunflower.

 

* * *

It was a pure curiosity that led Leo to Yumenosaki.

Or perhaps, it was because he realized his talent to write music as well as chasing after his passion—to shine, to sit on the peak of applause and screams of adoration, to stand on a stage with bright smile rivaling that of sun’s. Either way, Leo was there, and everything was here, and it was as if an entire new sparkling world opened right in front of his eyes.

It was not long before he met Izumi Sena. A platinum-haired young man with flower garden painted on his neck down to his back; Like Leo, his garden still seemed lonely, consisted of two camelias sprouted from leaves, accompanied with withering red tulip on Izumi’s nape that he refused to tell Leo despite how the said half-fledged idol kept pestering him about it.

Leo never saw a withering flower in someone’s garden before.

Somewhere in the back of his head, the green-eyed young man questioned what kind of thing Izumi did to whoever planted a tulip in his garden. It was almost surreal, but Leo kept quiet.

For an emotion to painfully pulled back, Leo wondered who experienced pain the most.

The one who planted flower, who carefully planting seed in form of a feeling and let it bloom as time passed by—the one who wistfully planted hope onto someone along with affection?

Or the one who nurtured the flower to bloom, who patiently watered the hope like drizzle of conflicted emotion—the one who realized they were loved and perhaps tried to love back?

In an unconscious attempt to cheer his friend back, Leo threw a bundle of his still titleless composition right to Izumi’s face, then running away laughing when he caught the glimpse of stunned blue eyes beyond scattered papers. There was a shout and an indoor shoe flying past his head, but Leo’s laugh still echoed through empty hallway of Yumenosaki.

And then on his wrist, over bluish arteries, a crowd of agrimony peeked through inked skin.

After Izumi, there was Sakuma Ritsu.

Black hair, red eyes, vaguely reminded Leo of a familiar form whose name was on the tip of his tongue, but refused to be said. Ritsu’s flower garden was sprout out from his hip, but with how careless the boy sleep, Leo could count how many flowers bloomed in his garden.

Four. Ritsu has four, and one of it was so ridiculously big, Leo couldn’t help but asked.

“Annoying bug,” Ritsu spat ditastefully.

“Ooh! I didn’t know insects love Rittsu!” Leo didn’t understand who.

The twilight-haired young man really thought of the epithet as a real insect, do animals even could love humans until flowers sprouted on their skin? It was possible, but when he tried to explain this theory to Ruka, his mother then smacked him right on the head.

(Izumi also smacked him when Leo told him this.)

The newly crowned King of Knights needed time to came to know what Ritsu meant was Sakuma Rei. But who wouldn’t, when Leo finally noticed the same white field bindweed peeked through inked leaves; Wilting on Rei’s palm and blooming on Ritsu’s stomach?

The same question surfaced—bubbled in his throat, nevertheless when Ritsu casually slumped on his lap, softly snoring while Leo tutted to himself trying to chase after imaginary rhythm, the same lad who wondered about Izumi’s withered tulip didn’t asked.

And then on his forearm, over fair skin, a violet dahlia slowly sprouted out.

Now that he has five flowers, Leo never been so delighted. It was just five, his parents’ lily of valleys, Ruka’s sunflower, Izumi’s agrimony, and Ritsu’s dahlia; Five among seven billion five hundred and something milion people. And yet, and still, knowing there were indeed people who love you has always been a transient blessing.

Leo never particularly feel envy toward people with colourful flower garden. If anything, he would experience inspiration rushing to his head—an aspiration while he scribbled on his notes, a wish to be that person, a curiosity of how it feel to be loved by so many people.

Leo never particularly feel jealousy toward people with colourful flower garden and hundred even more blooming flowers, but then once upon a time, he met someone with shades of affection exploded on his back, crawling to his neck, swirling to his shoulder blade, far too easy to be seen even with naked gaze. Red roses interwined with violet fuscia, rising above four-leaved clovers, daisies singing along pale skin, orchids dancing along pulsing arteries.

The holder of graceful garden name; It was Tenshouin Eichi.

And for the first time, after the Emperor dethroned the King of Knights, after stars-braided crown shattered into pieces much like Leo’s dreams, green eyes did symbolize jealousy.

Leo could still remember the haunting applause and screams, the light and gleams, the crushing defeat and buzzing beams. He couldn’t see, couldn’t feel, couldn’t think, couldn’t hear everything, he just could not _breathe_ again—it was just a mere live, the usual Izumi would scold. Mere, he said. But for the foolish king, it was everything.

Because he was betting his own kingdom, his own garden of affection.

(Losing the duel with Eichi, it was as if he betrayed the love they gave him.)

Upon the last stairs of the stage, Leo almost lost his footing.

Izumi didn’t say anything.

But the miserable King of Knights could feel the stares directed to him as he blankly dragged himself back to the changing room—not exactly Izumi’s, not exactly Ritsu’s, not exactly anyone who planted flower on his garden. The pity, the empathy, the sympathy, the fury, his own fury as he stood in front of gleaming mirror and only wished to flee.

After that, everything came crashing down at once. As if the one which supported his sky crumbled and his entire universe cracked in response, destroyed, exploded, and he found himself crushed. Perhaps it was his fault, or perhaps it was himself. He found himself awoke in the middle of night, gripped half-scribbled paper full of _not go_ _o_ _d enough_ composition.

He couldn’t find his rhythm anymore, it was empty, he was lonely.

It hurts, it hurt him so much not even withdrawing himself from the world could soothe the pain, not even locking himself in his room could stop the blood. He betrayed everyone, he lost his crown, he lied to his family; It was an anguish mess and Leo was too scared to take a glance at his right arm—he was afraid wilted flowers would greet his vision.

Albeit if should withered flowers did greeted his vision, Leo supposed it was to be expected.

He wasn’t worth every ounce of affection anymore, not even his family’s, as he found himself running away from home when he was supposed to come back to school because he was too scared. Not even Izumi’s, who sometimes checked on how he was doing. Not even Ritsu’s, who patiently waited. Not even Mikejima Madara’s, who brightly sprinkled sunshine onto his head to pull life back beyond green eyes.

It was pitiful, it was miserable, it was disheartening, it was an agony, he never knew having withered flowers in his garden would feel so hurtful.

(Although he never actually make sure if his flowers did wither.)

(He seemed always causing problems for his loved ones, he should just disappear for good.)

Guilt creeped up his back, he watched Knights’ lives occasionally. Peeked through pulled up hood, leaned to the shadow when he sensed familiar blue eyes darted to his form. He was still too ashamed to face his unit even when a new member he didn’t know stood on the stage; Red hair, violet eyes, passion as afire as flame.

Slowly, Leo learned to hide his crumbling sky between laugh as well as mumbles of inspiration. It worked well for Ruka and his parents, so he maintained the facade even after daylight fell for eventide, even after he was alone without no one to share the pain with.

It was just about time for him to regain composure and come back to Yumenosaki.

Or was it?

(He still wouldn’t glance at his flower garden.)

Then, he met a girl who was marked with affection up to her cheek. She seemed recognizing him somehow, but Leo never met her before—directly, at least. Who knows if she came to know him in the street or train or maybe even when he was performing somewhere else?

She persuaded him to come back.

And he did.

It was far too long; In the back of his mind, Leo wondered if he could start anew. Izumi probably would throw a chair to him, Ritsu would sleep as usual, but it was a given, especially if they really pulled out their emotion and left their flowers to wither on Leo’s skin.

To prolonged the uninvitable doom, Leo forcefully brought Knights to his own pace. He throw Judgement, running here and there, pouncing to whatever and whoever, yet Tsukasa Suou somehow could catch him and drag him to the practice room when Leo was too busy writing his composition to realize he was being kidnapped.

Narukami Arashi was the one who opened the door, but it was Izumi who greteed him.

“There you are!”

Leo looked up, a slightly strained laugh escaped his lips when he caught Izumi with hands on his hips, looking exasperated as always. Green eyes then slid to the splash of colours under strands of platinum hair—golden petals ringed with green, Leo’s relief was genuine, “There _you_ are, Sena! I see more people love you! What a relief, Sena is a kind person after all~!”

Izumi didn’t seems impressed, “Don’t _you_ me. What about you, huh?”

Leo needed time to answer.

“Still the same! Too bad alien didn’t kidnap me, so I’m the same old king!”

The anguish was transparent, but Leo still laughed anyway.

“But it’s given if Sena and Rittsu’s flowers were to wither after this time, wahahahaha~!”

Izumi blankly stared at Leo, Ritsu blinked as he tried to chase the remnants of his daydreams. Narukami shook his head while sighed audibly, and Tsukasa honestly looked like he wanted to break the nearest window and running away.

“Really, _Ou_ - _sama_ , have you seen your garden lately?”

The twilight-haired king tilted his head upon the question, slowly rolled his jacket’s sleeve. His flowers garden bared for the world to see; White lily of valleys, bright sunflowers, violet dahlia, a crowd of yellow agrimony—and finally, green eyes slightly widened in disbelief.

There, in his lower arm, shades of colours dripped on his skin.

Red geranium interwined with blue hyacinth. There was no sign which one was Narukami’s and which one was Tsukasa’s, but Leo couldn’t be careless since he also forgot which one was Izumi’s flower and which one was Ritsu’s flower either.

“Welcome back.”

It was only seven.

Seven among seven billion five hundred and something milion people.

And yet, for a moment, life sparkled beyond green eyes as Leo smiled.

**.**

**Author's Note:**

> A very very very late birthday gift for my son, my child, my sunshine, Tsukinaga Leo.
> 
> Thanks to Freyyyy for proofreading it. This is actually some kind of accompany fic (?) for Efflorescence, with same theme about flowers growing from skin and all, though this one is taking form of tattoo instead of real flowers. I wonder if I can write five different fics with same theme for all Knights member, it sounds tempting somehow.
> 
> There are so many flowers in this one, I forgot what is whose. But generally, lily of valleys mean "Happiness will come," then sunflower can be seen as symbol of good luck and admiration. White morning glory is bond, agrimony is gratitude, red geranium is comfort, while blue hyacinth is constancy.
> 
> Or at least, that what I get from hours of browsing and procrastinating.
> 
> Last, sorry for any grammar mistakes, thank you for reading~!  
> -Azureinne K.


End file.
